The Minerals and Gemstones Kingdom
You'll find extensive information about minerals here from their hardness to their luster. You can find out what their uses are, where they are found and see images of them. You can search for minerals by name, chemical group, color, streak, hardness, or crystal group.
Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School Teacher Section: No Searchable: Yes

Mineral Gallery
This commercial site sells minerals, but contains a comprehensive guide to minerals including images and physical characteristics.
Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School Teacher Section: No Searchable: Yes

Mineral's Classroom
You'll find online virtual tours of mining sites, lesson plans, and a home energy audit at this site from the New South Wales Minerals Council in Australia.
Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School Teacher Section: Yes Searchable: Yes

Atlas of Igneous and Metamorphic Rocks, Minerals, and Textures
This site from the University of North Carolina provides images of a number of rocks and minerals.
Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Igneous Rocks
Learn how igneous rocks form, learn about different types of igneous rocks and where they are found, or take a quiz at this site from the Department of Geology/Environmental Science James Madison University Harrisonburg. The site is part of a larger site, the Geology Website where you will also find subsites on sedimentary rocks, plate tectonics, metamorphic rocks, and the Wilson cycle.
Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

The Image
This site has images and information on gemstones and minerals.
Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Earth Rocks
Learn more about rocks at this site from Bryce Canyon National Park.
Intended Audience: Students Reading Level: Elementary School Teacher Section: Yes Searchable: No

Minerals
This online field guide from the San Diego Museum of Natural History has profiles of 15 minerals, a glossary of mineral terms, and a section on how to identify minerals.
Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Mineralogy 4 Kids
Do you know what minerals you have in your house? Find out at this site from the Mineralogical Society of America. You can also learn more about the properties of minerals, discover how they form, and explore the rock cycle! if you still have questions, you can even ask a Mineralogist.
Intended Audience: Students Reading Level: Elementary School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Mineral Matters
Learn how to identify a mineral, grow your own crystals, or play some mineral games at this site from the San Diego Natural History Museum.
Intended Audience: Students Reading Level: Elementary School Teacher Section: No Searchable: No

Rockhounds
Learn more about how rocks are formed and how they are identified, then test your rock knowledge at this site from the Franklin Institute Wired School.
Intended Audience: Students Reading Level: Elementary School Teacher Section: Yes Searchable: No

Fossils and Rocks
This unit of study for grade four integrates earth science and life science as students gain an understanding of the processes of rock formation and study fossils to learn more about geologic time.
Intended Audience: Teachers Reading Level: N/A Teacher Section: N/A Searchable: No

Minerals, Crystals, and Gems - Stepping Stones to Inquiry
This three lesson unit for grades 3-8 from the Smithsonian Institution introduces students to mineral science and teaches the scientific process of observation, hypothesis, and conclusion.
Intended Audience: Teachers Reading Level: N/A Teacher Section: N/A Searchable: No